The Gold Pendant
by Ze Ultimate Fanfic Writer
Summary: When the Water Dragon pulled into the port and Princess Arim first laid her eyes on Cair Paravel, she was sure she was to have a lovely time. But nobody could guess what comedies and tragedies were laid out for the Princess of Sandao... PeterOC
1. Prologue

**A/N: Hi fellas! This is my first C. S. Lewis fic! Sadly, I do not own Peter, Edmund, Susan, Lucy, Narnia, etc. etc. etc. All that belongs to C. S. Lewis... wait a minute. He's dead. So I guess it belongs to thinks his grandson... I think. If not please smack me on the cheek. But I do own Arim, Shin, Heem, the kingdom of Sandao (which, by the way, was based on Oriental countries - China, Korea, and Japan, as you might be able to tell), etc. etc. etc. If I catch anyone writing fanfics about them without my permission, I will give them a good slap on the face. You'll probably hate me for the length, but this is the prologue - only the beginning.**

A 16-year-old girl wearing a black cloak and wearing a quiver of arrows ran across the battlefield where Calormene soldiers and Sandese soldiers were knocking out and being knocked out, wounding and being wounded, killing and being killed. A Calormene arrow narrowly missed her as she clutched onto the gold pendant she wore on her neck. It was probably no bigger than an American 25 cent coin, but on it was carved a lotus flower - the symbol of Sandese royalty. The 16-year-old girl was, in fact, Princess Arim of Sandao. "Thank Chang," thought Arim as the arrow ripped her cloak and missed her body by inches.

Looking ahead of her, Arim spotted her brother, the 20-year-old Crown Prince Yongqi, in battle with a Calormene soldier. He knocked the Calormene soldier out with ease. Arim cried out, "Yongqi! It's me, Arim!" Yongqi looked and spotted his sister. "Arim! Come here!" He pulled Arim onto his horse. "What are you doing here?" "Running from the enemy, that's what I'm doing here." Arim responded.

Yongqi handed Arim a bow. "Aim at the Tisroc," he whispered. Arim smiled. "Why does Calormen want Sandao so much?" "Beats me," said Yongqi. "If Calormen defeats Sandao..." "Father and mother will be killed, you, Shin, and Heem will probably be killed, and I will probably become a Calormene slave, if not killed. Oh, and Sandao will become yet another territory of Calormen." Arim was putting an arrow to her bow when a cry was heard. "Retreat! Retreat!"

"It's father!" gasped Arim and Yongqi. Yongqi started to ride towards camp.

X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X0X

In the tent, King Tiĕ of Sandao, his wife Queen Timian, their four children Yongqi, Arim, and twins Shin and Heem, and the General of the Sandese Army were discussing battle plans. The General of Sandao had a map of the area surrounding the battlefield, the Sandese soldiers' camp, and the Calormene soldiers' camp in front of him.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! We strike, hard and fast, and kill every Calormene we see!" Shin yelled.

"Your Majesty, I told you a hundred times that war is not as simple as that," said an exasperated General. "We have to plan every attack carefully, take in the geographic conditions as well as -" "Nah, General. War is attacking mercilessly!" cried Shin.

"Well," said Queen Timian. "I think that we should send Arim, Shin, and Heem away from the battlefield until the Calormenes have retreated. It's too dangerous for the youngsters."

"I'm not a youngster! I'm 16," said Arim. "I want to help. I want to -" she was cut off by Shin. "I want to fight! I want to fight! Fight! Fight!"

"What about Prince Yongqi, Your Majesty?" suggested the General. "If His Majesty is killed in battle, there will be nobody to ascend the throne -" "Except for me," said Shin. "Does that mean I'm no good as a Crown Prince? Well-"

"It is my wish," said King Tiĕ. "That if Yongqi is killed in battle, Heem will be my heir."

"_What_?!" cried both Shin and Heem. "Why can't I be king? I'm the second eldest son!" demanded Shin. "I don't want to be king, father," cried Heem. "If kings have to be away from their family all their lives, I'm not being a king."

"That will be ENOUGH!" yelled the King. "Yongqi, Arim, Shin, and Heem are evacuating, no more words!" Shin and Heem fell quiet at once. Heem nodded. "Okay, father."

"But where?" asked the General. "We can't send Their Majesties to Calormen" ("I should think not" muttered the Queen) "and the King of Archenland is not accepting evacuating foreigners."

"Well, there's only one place left then," said Arim. "Four Kings and Queens have newly been crowned. They have just defeated an evil witch. I think they are great warriors, and it will be an honor to stay with them."

"Where?" asked the King, Queen, Yongqi, and the General.

"Narnia," said Arim dreamily.

**A/N: Well, folks, how did you like it? I warned you, this is only the prologue! Things are going to get much more exciting soon.**


	2. Arrival at Cair Paravel

**A/N: Oh, I am really, really, really, really, really sorry for making you guys wait so long. I've been really busy, plus, my parents don't let me use the computer, because of fear that it will strain my eyes, and because I have more important stuff to do, like studying. Disclaimer: I do not own Narnia, or anything that is in Narnia. I do own Sandao, however, and Princess Arim and her family and servants, etc., and anyone who uses them in their fic will regret it for years to come. Also: The Sandese language is a hybrid mixture of Japanese, Korean, and Chinese, with some hyphenated Korean style Chinese. If any Chinese or Japanese people are reading this, please understand that everyone makes mistakes and please don't PM me angrily saying "YOU GOT THIS WRONG, YOU insert cuss words" if you spot a mistake. The traditions, too, are mostly East Asian. Don't yell at me for gender discrimination, because growing up in a biased country, the Sandese visitors are used to gender discrimination. Thank you.**

**PS. If this chapter is mostly rambling, doesn't make much sense, and/or is really terrible, please forgive me. I just wanted to get this out of the way so that the real plot can get moving.**

**PS. PS. Throughout the story little bits of Sandese mythology will be revealed. It is mostly based on Chinese mythology.**

**PS. PS. PS. This is in diary format, although it does not start with Dear Diary, which is because this is Arim's first time she's written a diary in English (or Narnian).**

**musafa: Thank you for reviewing! (Yongqi is 20 - it says so in the second paragraph. Shin and Heem are 11.) And thank you for putting my story on your alerts list! gives musafa a cookie 10 miles in diameter**

**floppyearsthebunny: Thank you for reviewing! I promise, things will get much more interesting soon. gives floppyearsthebunny a cookie 8 miles in diameter**

**lickitysplit: Thank you for reviewing and pointing out those things for me! You will know in this chapter but Sandese people do not speak what we Earthlings call English. They speak a language I invented (see above), so the prologue is a rough translation of their language into English. So what the Crown Prince Yongqi said is just plain ol' "I don't know" but since he was talking to his sister and in an informal tone the closest thing was "Beats me". gives lickitysplit a cookie 8.5 miles in diameter**

_Day 1_

My name is Arim, Princess of Sandao. Since this is the first night I am spending at Cair Paravel, I have decided to keep a diary about what happens. I don't know if I will be able to write in correct grammar and spelling, as I am learning this language.

Why am I at Cair Paravel, you might ask? It is because my country is in peril. My father King Tiĕ, mother Queen Timian, and old family friend and great warrior General Muko are preparing for the final battle against Calormen as I write. My father decided to send my brothers Yongqi, Shin, and Heem and I away from the perils of battle and sent me away to Cair Paravel at the east end of Narnia. From what I know, the four Kings and Queens of Narnia (crowned four months ago) live there - Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy.

I and my brothers packed some clothes and other necessities. Then we went on our horses to the port, where the _Water Dragon_ was waiting. We and our maidservants boarded the ship, and some sailors helped our horses on board.

The journey took about one week. Narnia is not far from Sandao, but by an ordinary sailboat it takes two to three weeks, and by a royal ship of war (like the _Water Dragon_) it takes a week. During the week, we studied the language spoken in Narnia and the cultures and traditions. As soon as I heard we were nearing Cair Paravel (what a strange name), while my royal brothers were practicing sword fighting downstairs, I took my personal maidservant (whose name is Kura, and is one year younger than me) on the deck. Looking towards the castle, I gasped.

Cair Paravel had a simply stunning view. It was on a small peninsula, and when I arrived, the Sun, the son of the Heavenly Emperor was nearly on his way to the west end of the world, so his light shone down on the castle and the sparkling water. It was a beautiful sight. I think that Kura and I were the only one who appreciated the view.

"It's beautiful, mistress," whispered Kura in an awed voice. I could only nod.

When we reached the small peninsula, I could see the four Kings and Queens out to greet me on their horses. What struck me was the fact that they were so young! The eldest of the four, the High King Peter, seemed no older than 16 or 17, and the youngest, Queen Lucy, was no more than 12. The next youngest, King Edmund, was only a year or two older than Lucy, and the second oldest, Queen Susan, was only two or three years younger than King Peter.

Once our feet were safely on the beach, my brothers and I bowed to the Kings and Queens. (Of course, it is very different from the Narnian way.) Queen Susan said, "Welcome to Cair Paravel, Your Majesties. I promise we will make you feel right at home."

"It is an honor to stay at such a great castle," we said.

And a great castle it was, for it was twice as high as the highest palace building back at home, and about one and a half times as wide.

I caught the youngest Queen, Lucy, staring at our horses. "Oh," I said. "In Sandao, Many royalties and members of the rich upper class dye their horses' bodies."

I looked back at Kamikaze, who was nervously scratching at the sand with her hoof, and at the Narnian horses. Kamikaze certainly looked unusual in that respect, for most of her body was sky-blue and there were little patterns that looked like clouds and wind dyed a shade of darker blue on her sides. Yongqi's horse Storm was purple, dark purple, and Yuki (the twins' horses) were white (naturally white). Queen Lucy opened her mouth to say something, frowning, but she was interrupted by a new voice.

"Ah, the visitors from Sandao, I expect?" said a new voice from behind.

I looked, and from behind the Kings and Queens came a person, and I was startled; for this person was not really a person. While from the waist up he was a man (save the horns on his head), he had the legs and feet of a goat. Of course, I had seen pictures of his kind (Fauns, I think) on the Water Dragon, but I could but turn white. I learned his name when Queen Lucy turned towards him, saying "Mr. Tumnus!" I elbowed Shin, who was staring at Lucy and Mr. Tumnus very awkwardly. Heem, as usual, was prim and said nothing. Mr. Tumnus bowed. "It is an honor to have such great people in our castle," he said.

Next, Mr. Tumnus wanted to "learn more about the country of our noble visitors" so we went to (what King Peter called it) "trade information" or (what King Edmund called it) "have a good jaw about our countries". Cair Paravel was a grand palace with many rooms, so one of them was picked as our discussion chamber.

"Sandao is a country with a noble history," I said - not meaning to brag or anything, of course. "Our ancestors were fifty sons and daughters of the skies, who were able to travel through the layers of the clouds. One of them was the great King Ha-een, the founder of Sandao, 15th ancestor of the current King my Father, and one of the many sons of the Heavenly Emperor himself."

At this point, King Edmund asked who or what the Heavenly Emperor was.

"The Heavenly Emperor is a divine being," explained Heem. "He is King of all gods, goddesses, and children of the heavens that fly around in the Skies, Emperor of all humans, animals, and Wizards and their daughters the Fairies that walk on the Ground, and Lord of all ghosts and past souls of dead people that reside in the Underworld."

He would have said more when King Edmund muttered loudly, "Sounds like Aslan." His sister Queen Susan elbowed him.

"Who's Aslan?" asked big-mouthed Shin.

"Uh," began King Edmund, but his brother Peter interrupted. "He is the great Lion, the son of the Emperor-beyond-the-Sea, and the King over all Kings in Narnia. He was killed by the evil White Witch, but rose to life again and defeated the White Witch's army. He crowned us four as the sovereigns of Narnia. My brother-"

"Ha, ha, ha, very funny," said Shin. "Lion? A lion? Excuse me?"

"_Shin!!!_" I hissed and poked him, but Edmund already had showed signs of wanting to slap Shin.

"We've seen him!" Lucy cried. "We've seen him killed by the Witch! And we've seen him alive again after that! I've ridden on his back! And although the Witch can turn people into statues, Aslan can turn them back into people again!"

The conversation was starting to rise in volume when Queen Susan slapped her hand on the table. "Stop it! All of you! Unless you want someone to be killed!"

Discussion ended soon after that and Queen Susan invited us four to dinner here.

"It's getting late. We must go to bed," said I.

But at the end Yongqi, the twins, and I were half-forced, half-persuaded to dinner. The food was unlike anything I had ever tasted before. There were venison, chicken, pork, and beef. That I could describe, for I know them, but they were cooked in a somewhat different way... richer, for one, and with more oil. There were also many types of vegetables, which I also knew. But there was also a strange kind of purple liquid that smelled of grapes in little gold bowls on sticks, and Yongqi raised one of them and asked nobody in particular, "What is this?"

"Wine, Prince Yongqi," said King Peter, smiling pleasantly. "Made of the fermented juice of grapes. I advise you not to drink too much of it."

I must have slept through Chapter 18 - Food and Drink.

After the meal, Queen Susan offered to lead me and the servant girls (Kura, the twins' maidservant Mura (Kura's sister, one year younger than her), and Chunhwa, Yongqi's maidservant, a year older than me) to our chambers. King Peter led my brother Yongqi to his chambers and King Edmund and Queen Lucy led the twins to their chambers.

My new chambers were on the fifth floor while the servant girls' were on the third and the princes' were on the second, so the Queen and I had a long way to go. As we were walking up the stairs we talked a lot about our siblings, our likes and dislikes, our families and homes, and we became firm friends.

One of the things we talked about was my voyage from Mupi (the port from which we left) to Cair Paravel.

"I studied the Narnian language and customs, Your Majesty, and also the inhabitants," I said.

"You speak pretty well for someone who has studied for a week," said the Queen, raising her eyebrow.

"Actually, Your Majesty, I have been studying the language for a year. As soon as I was 15, my royal parents had me studying the language widely spoken in these parts, and so did they with Yongqi. The twins have only learnt the language as soon as we found out we were evacuating here, but their skill is considerable, Your Majesty."

"Susan, call me Susan," said Susan.

"I was very surprised to learn that the sons of the gods live here."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean what you call the fauns, centaurs, and satyrs."

"So they resemble some figures in Sandese mythology?"

"They are the sons and daughters of the gods."

At the door of my bedroom I shook her hand (which was a common practice in Narnia for some reason I know not), and said, "Well, Q- Susan, I believe I am going to have a wonderful time at Cair Paravel. I and my brothers will be off when the letter comes from the battlefield."

"If not?" asked Susan.

I bit my lip. What if we were defeated by the Calormenes? Then Sandao would only become part of the growing empire of the Tisroc, and Mother and Father would be killed. If my brothers and I were in Sandao at the time, we would almost certainly be killed too.

"If that happens, Arim," said Susan cheerfully. "We grant you, your brothers, and your maidservants permanent home here in Cair Paravel."

"I hope that never happens," I muttered.

"If you have a hard time here," said Susan. "The best thing to do is perhaps to write your feelings down. We call it a _diary_ or a _journal_. Well, the customs in Narnia are certainly much different from those in Sandao."

Susan handed me a black notebook, about the size of my face, and a pen. It was of some black substance I know not of, and there were gold swirls here and there. Opposite the writing side there was a green jewel.

I thanked her and turned towards the door of my new bedroom. The door was of Sandese paper - called _sanji_, and instead of the door handle was a Sandese-style steel ring. I grabbed it and yanked the door open. It felt strange to open a door all by myself, without maidservants on either side. I had hardly glanced at the interior of my room for two seconds when I gasped.

The place was furnished _exactly_ like my bedroom back at home. The drawers, the cover, the blankets neatly folded and placed in one corner, the small door that led to the bathroom, even the window that was in the same place, everything was almost exactly like my bedroom. Only the scenery behind my window was different.

Looking out of it, I saw the beach and the sea behind Cair Paravel. The good Moon, one of the Daughters of the Heavenly Emperor, was releasing her light on the sea. I had been captivated by the sea's view earlier this day; I was captivated by it again looking out of my new window. I smiled dreamily. Then, remembering the small book I held in my hand, I settled down on my desk, and picked up my pen.

**A/N: There! How'd you like it? Please excuse any mistakes I've made - I'm still a beginning writer - and again, sorry for the long wait! I've been extremely busy!!!**

**Did I forget anything? I hope not.**

**Oh, yeah, right - please review!!!**


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